A start-up in 1984, Aloys Wobben's Enercon, with sales of around $5.7 billion in 2013, is now a global player in alternative energy, specializing in turbines for windmills. It's the third-largest company in the sector, with a 10% share, behind Denmark's Vestas Wind Systems and China's Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co. and ahead of GE Wind and Siemens, according to Navigant Consulting Inc. The company never gained a foothold in the United States, having lost a court dispute there in the mid-1990s, in which a wind turbine maker, now defunct, accused Enercon of infringing on its patents. It also has encountered trouble in India, where a subsidiary carried out a kind of coup d'état and unilaterally wrested control from its German parent. And although Enercon has no plans to enter China, prospects are favorable enough in Canada, Europe, Brazil and other South American countries for it to continue on its slow-but-steady growth trajectory. Meanwhile, it has diversified into rail transport, establishing four hubs in Germany and routes into Italy and Portugal. A man of strong opinions, Wobben spoke out against the Iraq war and doesn't lament his company's lack of presence in the U.S. market. "I wouldn't enjoy supplying wind turbines to a nation so that it can supply water for huge golf courses," he once remarked in an interview. In October 2012, Wobben, known as "Mr. Wind" in Germany, transferred his 100% stake in Enercon into a family trust and announced he was retiring from business for health reasons. Wobben's nephew, Simon-Hermann Wobben, is on the company's board. More »

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